British ports welcome first Women in Maritime Taskforce meeting

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The British Ports Association welcomed the first meeting of the new Women in Maritime Taskforce which was facilitated by the umbrella group Maritime UK today. The Taskforce has been established to address fairness, equality and inclusion within the maritime sector.

UK Maritime Minister Nusrat Ghani MP attended the first meeting and encouraged the sector to both challenge and support the Government on this initiative. At the meeting she said:

“This taskforce will be crucial in opening up the wealth of career opportunities in the maritime industry to women around the country. Today’s meeting will start the journey towards better understanding equality and inclusion in the sector and I want to see many more women taking up careers in maritime.”

Maritime UK brings together the UK’s shipping, ports, marine and business services industries to promote the sector, influence government and drive growth. Maritime makes a significant contribution to the UK economy, supporting just under 1 million jobs and contributing around £40bn to GVA.

The first meeting of the Taskforce brought together leaders from across the maritime sector to start identifying practical steps to increase the number of women in maritime and crucially within senior roles across its industries. The Taskforce is first working to fully understand the various issues affecting the sector which include recruitment, pay, progression and retention.

“I welcome the new Women in Maritime Taskforce and look forward to working with leaders from across the maritime sector to develop practical steps to increase the number of women in the maritime sector, which in comparison to other industries still has some challenges to overcome. The maritime industry needs to have a holistic approach to addressing the gender imbalance and how women can play an important part in addressing the skills shortage within the sector. We look forward to working with Maritime UK on this new initiative.”